Comments on: More noise about Mac OS in redesigned iPods

It's been awhile since the last iPod revamp, and signs are building that we're looking down the barrel at new, more sophisticated models, perhaps as early as September.

[Christopher Hall]

What of these fat Nanos?

I'm seeing all kinds of mockups on Engadget and Gizmodo about iPod Nanos that look like stubby little fat iPods (most likely to accommodate the wider screen). Apple legal's insistence to have these sites take down the photos seems to point to a legitimate leak of a future iPod, but it's not at all what I was hoping for.

Best case, I figured they would incorporate the iPhone's interface into the next generation iPod. In fact, I'm putting off replacing my old iPod for that very announcement, assuming that's what's next. But if these chubbPod rumors turn out to be true, I doubt my next MP3 player will have a half-eaten fruit on it.

[Tom Krazit]

I couldn't decide whether those were legit

I'm with you, I thought they looked a little odd.

I don't think Apple requesting the pictures be removed necessarily hints that they are actual products. Didn't the iMac keyboard photos stay up for a while, with Steve actually referring to their having been leaked during his presentation? In any event, if Apple did request removal every time somebody posted an actual image, they'd immediately legitimize the report every time.

Something's coming, though, I think most of us can agree on that. You might as well hold off a little longer.

[thedreaming]

why?

Why make ipods more like the iphone? Wouldn't this remove the uniquenes of the iphone and make people angry?

[pgh]

Why not?

My wife has an iPhone and the video screen is considerably nicer than that of my current-gen 30 gig iPod. Add the nicer user interface (flip view) and flash capability for better battery life, keep the price in the same range as the current models and they will have a winner.

Oh yes, one more thing. It won't have an attached 300-page phone bill.

[camp88]

Why not, indeed.

Some folks live in areas that don't get good AT&T reception.
Some folks have 2-3 yrs left on a contract with another mobile
provider. Some folks don't have need for a mobile phone (yes,
they exist), and some folks would like more than 8 GBs of
memory for their media. Some folks have more than one iPod.
Hence, hor many of those folks a new iPhone-like iPod makes
sense. For the folks who live or work in an area that gets good
AT&T reception or who don't want to carry around two devices,
the iPhone makes sense. If the new iPod has iPhone-like
features, Apple doesn't have to worry . . . Zune has to worry.

[minimalist]

completely different markets

Does the 200 dollar 4GB Nano cannibalize the 250 dollar 8GB model? Or the 30Gb model cannibalize the 80 GB one? Of course not. A 350 dollar portable media player with tons of storage is not even in the same league as a 600 dollar smart-phone with a very small iPod integrated. They have very different markets.

But now that people have seen that widescreen movies can be done on the iPhone, anything less than a widescreen display on a next gen iPod will seem dated and dull. The big problem Apple now has is they iPod is long overdue for a big update so they have to do SOMETHING? and yet the alternatives all have serious drawbacks.

Limited flash memory capacity means you can?t create a compelling replacement to the current 30 and 80Gb iPod models. You might be able to convince 6GB mini owners of the benefits of the 4GB Nano but getting an 80Gb iPod user to ?upgrade? to a 8 or even 16Gb flash model is a really tough sell. And hard drives are bulky and power hungry which means the big touch screen will suck more power and be bulkier than even the current 5.5G models (which already have very limited battery life for video playback).

I hope they choose the latter because this iPhone owner would gladly geta high capacity version just for media. But if its just 8Gb then why bother?

[Sabroson]

Dont make a phone call on it if you do not want to..

Is that simple.

[godofbiscuits--2008]

"Noise"?

No, no anti-Apple bias here at all.

[Tom Krazit]

Where do you guys get this stuff?

I mean, seriously, how does that particular word suggest a bias one way or another?

[System Tyrant]

Maybe...

it means talk, rumors, chatter, etc.

Kind of like 'noise from the underground'. Which generally means information from secretive sources.

[Macalope]

Sounds about right to the horned one

Considering Tom was discussing what the rumor sites are saying, "noise" is not an inappropriate term.

[QuetzalcoatlUSA]

Oye!

Instead of dropping the new version of OSX into all of these new devices, how about putting it into your bloody computers????!!! Seems like OSX is creeping into every device except the ones most valuable to its core business: their freaking desktops.

[sciontcya]

Yeah!

None of our company's new Macs or my personal Macs have
shipped with OS X!
Are you sure you didn't come off of 8-hours of Air America
before posting that stupid comment?

As for the iPod "spy" shots, I think it's brilliant on Apple's part.
Leak phony pix and then threaten legal action to make it lok
real.
Awesome job Apple.

[R. U. Sirius]

Groan

What decade are you living in Quetzalcoatl? OSX is the OS in every Mac and has been for, erm, several years.

[Sabroson]

What is your point?? OS-X is on the computers..

OS-X is on Macs also... duh!

[Scrowshaw]

or you could buy something not from apple

and not have to buy said movie or TV show at all. Just copy and convert, transfer, play.

This way you dont have to rely on Apple to release a device that you can only use as they say you can.

[NameCat.com]

Scrowshaw, you're apparently misinformed

You don't have to buy media to play it on your iPod. It simply has
to be in the right format. There are a number of free tools to
accomplish this, such as iSquint. Check sites such as
download.com, versiontracker.com, and macupdate.com to find
them.

[Sabroson]

Or better yet...

Why don't you just make your own device from scratch?

:-S

[Scrowshaw]

Exactly.. so where does bias come into it

Apple fanboys are getting paranoid these days.

That article from Tom is informative, unbiased and i really dont know what mr biscuits is going on about.

Yes noise is chatter from various sources. And talking about such noise is biased against Apple now, when Tom is advertising their products in a proactive light.

[Maccess]

New iPod = Mac Micro?

Could the new iPod really be the stealth Mac that Steve Jobs will put in everyone's hand?

If it has bluetooth or USB it can support an external keyboard. A monitor can be attached through a small port or with wireless technology (of which several kinds are already available).

[GeoNorth]

To me this sounds like...

...he's trying to turn the iPod into something more akin to the (Linux powered) Archos personal media devices, some of which have WiFi, some of which have built-in camcorders.

It would be interesting to see what Archos will do about this, and what type of devices they will release, where they will go with regard to the platform.

I personally would like to see them open up the platform, make it a sort of Linux-palmtop. An OSX powered iPod could also be the same, hopefully.

[CharlesRovira]

This is an example of somebody

blowing smoke out of their butts.

It's like an "iPhone but maintains the familiar click wheel interface" tell me that this is somebody who doesn't know what they're talking about (or the physical characteristics of either or both of these.

[minimalist]

in the future, yes...

but in September? The economics are just not there yet. There
is no way Apple can afford to offer anything larger than a 16GB
iPod... which is not really an iPod at all, but a glorified Nano.
Different markets, different expectations.

Lots of people are not satisfied with carrying just some of their
music and video. Apple understands this and that is why they
make the 30 and 80 GB iPods.

Until we have 64 and 128 GB flash capacities at reasonable
prices, it does not make sense to switch the flagship iPods to
flash memory.

[gonzotherat3]

Hmm...

A new iPod is good although it was already good. I think that the ability to watch tv and movies in landscape mode is a plus. If they don't change too much, I might get one. I like the iPod but don't have an iPhone, so it might be interesting to see what it finally comes out to be like.